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What are the major differences between reporter genes and selectable markers?
Posted September 1, 2022
Answer
Reporter genes and selectable markers are two types of genes used to analyze transformants in studies that produce transgenic organisms. There are several major differences between these two types of genes.
| Basis of differentiation | Reporter genes | Selectable markers |
| Definition | Are a type of marker gene that is used to ‘tag’ another gene or DNA sequence of interest such as a promoter to quantify the level of expression of the transformed gene | Are a type of DNA sequence used to distinguish between transformants (transformed genes) and non-transformants (non-transformed genes) |
| Function | Used to measure the amount of expression of the transformant | Used to distinguish between transformants and non-transformants |
| Occurrence | Occurs in between the promoter and the gene of interest | May occur in the plasmid or within the gene construct |
| Promoter | Is regulated under the promoter of the transformed gene | Has its own promoter |
| Examples | Green fluorescent protein (GFP), luciferase, octopine synthase | Antibiotic resistance genes, antimetabolite marker genes, and herbicide resistance genes |
Additional resources
Selectable Markers and Reporter Genes for Engineering the Chloroplast of Chlamydomonas reinhardtii